Pickup trucks and other load carrying vehicles (e.g., trade vans and light utility vehicles) are useful for transporting cargo from one location to another. The cargo may include items that are loaded at a point of departure and unloaded upon arrival at a particular destination. Examples of cargo include yard waste, demolition waste, construction materials, and recreational supplies. In some cases, the cargo items may remain loaded on the vehicle for periodic access such as, for example, mechanical parts or tools that are used on an intermittent basis.
Cargo is commonly transported and/or stored in a cargo storage portion of the vehicle; for example, in the rear cargo compartment of a pickup truck, which may be open or closed (e.g., if fitted with a tonneau or topper), or in the rear interior compartment of a utility van.
While pickup trucks have remained popular over the years, a constant problem has been that not all areas of the cargo bed are easily accessible. For example, in the case of pickup trucks fitted with tonneau covers or toppers, the ability to access the entire cargo bed of a pickup truck easily and effectively by an operator positioned at the edge of an open tailgate continues to present a problem. Further, in the case of weighty cargo such as concrete, sand, dirt, wood, etc., which may have a weight of a ton or more, handling of the cargo can be difficult for an individual person to perform without a power assist device.